Customizable web site access system and method therefore

ABSTRACT

A customizable web site access system is comprised of a software program incorporating both a composing portion and a performing portion. The composing portion of the software program is used to create a presentation. The presentation includes a list of URLs for display, a desired sequence of display of the URLs, and a duration of display of the URLs. The performing portion of the software program operates to load and display the presentation to a user of the web in an automatic slide show presentation.

RELATED APPLICATIONS

The present application is a continuation of U.S. patent applicationSer. No. 11/637,236, filed Dec. 11, 2006, which is a continuation ofU.S. patent application Ser. No. 10/014,929, filed Oct. 22, 2001, nowU.S. Pat. No.: 7,171,629, issued on Jan. 30, 2007 and entitled“Customizable Web Site Access System and Method Therefore,” which claimspriority to U.S. Provisional Application No. 60/242,340, filed Oct. 20,2000, and entitled “Customizable Web Site Access System and MethodTherefore,” and to U.S. Provisional Application No. 60/286,189, filedApr. 24, 2001, and entitled “Customizable Web Site Access System andMethod Therefore.” All of the aforementioned patent applications arehereby incorporated by reference in their entireties.

FIELD OF THE INVENTION

The present invention relates to the manner in which a user and/ordeveloper of the World Wide Web presents and/or accesses a web site and,more specifically, to a system and method to enable multiple types ofautomated navigation through a plurality of web site addresses.

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION

Currently, various web site owners and developers are attempting tocaptivate their audience with cutting-edge presentations through largeinvestments in animation and streaming media. Those investments havedecayed rapidly as the content of the site changes and becomes obsolete.However, without attempting to use these types of costly presentations,web site owners and developers must passively accept the random pathsthrough the available content that visitors to the site choose toreview, resulting in a significant amount of site content that is neverseen.

From a user's perspective, access to the World Wide Web is most oftenachieved by accessing a single-source, static destination, e.g., asingle web site address, and navigating vertically through multiplepages at a single destination by selecting navigational links within aweb page. Alternatively, the user utilizes the results list of a searchengine to access the various web sites that are directed to the user'stopic of interest. To review numerous web sites in the results list, theuser must continually return from the topic site to the list to reachthe next web page link making navigation of the sites an oftenunnecessarily lengthy and tedious task.

As such, there is a need for a web site access system that enables website owners and developers to provide an automated presentation ofdesired web page sequences without the costs of reprogramming sitecontent or installing development tools, and that enables web site usersto adjust those presentations to their preferences and/or enact theirown presentation of web sites of interest, such as through the use ofsearch engine results.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION

The needs described above are in large measure addressed by thecustomizable web site access system of the present invention. The systemis comprised of a software program incorporating both a composingportion and a performing portion. The composing portion of the softwareprogram is used to create a presentation. The presentation includes alist of URLs for display, a desired sequence of display of the URLs, anda duration of display of the URLs. The performing portion of thesoftware program operates to load and automatically display thepresentation to a user of the web according to the URL list, sequence ofdisplay, and duration of display.

The performing portion of the software program also preferably providesa control panel whereby a web user can not only pause or stop thepresentation but can also change the sequence and/or duration of displayof each of the URLs of the presentation. The use of the software programof the present invention enables various types of navigation through theweb including horizontal navigation, vertical navigation, or itemnavigation of web sites.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

FIG. 1 is a block diagram depicting a customizable web site accesssystem of the present invention.

FIG. 2A is a flow chart depicting the operation of the composer portionof the customizable web site access system of the present invention.

FIG. 2B is a flow chart depicting the operation of the performer portionof the customizable web site access system of the present invention.

FIG. 3 is an example of a web page for the entry of desired user data tobe implemented through the customizable web site access system of thepresent invention.

FIG. 4 is an example of a header that may be displayed at the top ofeach web site accessed by the system of the present invention.

FIG. 5 is an example of a horizontal navigation web site address list.

FIG. 6 depicts a typical web site home page incorporating a plurality oflinks to other web pages within the web site.

FIG. 7 is an example of a vertical navigation web site address list.

FIG. 8 depicts the web site of FIG. 6, wherein the present invention hasbeen invoked, provides a display screen, and presents a slide show ofthe linked web pages within the web site.

FIG. 9 (pages 1 and 2) depicts a typical search result list of a searchperformed by a search engine.

FIG. 10 is an example of an item navigation web site address listcorresponding to the search results of FIG. 9.

FIG. 11 depicts the search result list of FIG. 9, wherein the presentinvention has been invoked, provides a display screen, and presents aslide show of the addresses within the search result list.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

The web site access system of the present invention enables site ownersand developers to create, in a matter of minutes, automated andcustomized presentations of multiple web pages that dynamically presentmore content in less time to users without the expense of any newdevelopment. The web site access system of the present inventionoperates to combine the bookmark feature of web browsers with the slideshow feature of presentation software. With the present invention, siteowners and developers can easily change the page sequence, adjust thetiming, and add an audio overlay to the web presentation. At the sametime, a user visiting a site can view those presentations of interest attheir desired pace and a user presented with a search engine resultslist can view the list's web sites in an automated, sequential fashionwithout returning continuously to the original search engine resultslist.

FIG. 1 provides an overview block diagram of the system architecture ofthe customizable web site access system 10 of the present invention. Asshown, system 10 is a software program incorporating two maincomponents, a composer 12 and a performer 14 that are preferably storedon a host server 16. Composer 12 may be manually invoked by a siteowner/developer 18 to create a customized presentation 20 of multipleweb pages or may be automatically invoked by a query-based system 22,e.g., search engine, to create a customized presentation of the multipleweb pages resulting from a query. In either instance, the URLs of thesites that comprise the presentation and the corresponding options ofthe presentation, e.g., sequence of the URLs, the duration that each isto be displayed, whether the sequence is to be continuously repeated,etc., are stored on the host server 16 or, alternatively, sent directlyto the performer 14 for display via a programming interface.

The performer 14 is that portion of the software of system 10 that auser/visitor 24 to the web utilizes to access and view the customizedpresentation 20. The performer 14 may be activated by a user 24 bysimply entering a web site, by selecting a site from a directory ofsites, by selecting a hyperlink embedded within a message, by selectinga certain presentation 20 from a gallery of presentations 20, etc.Essentially, any manner of reaching a web site can be established as theinvoker of the performer 14. Upon invoking the performer 14, the user 24is not only provided with the presentation 20 but is also provided bythe performer with the ability to modify the presentation 20 to theirdesires, e.g., pausing on a certain page, escaping/canceling theperformer, changing the sequence of pages displayed, and changing theduration of pages displayed.

A flowchart depicting the preferred operation of the composer 12 isshown in FIG. 2A. As indicated, per input block 302, composer 12preferably prompts the site owner/developer to enter owner registrationinformation. The owner registration information may be in the form of aname, password, or other type of user identifier. The owner registrationinformation is then used to determine whether the registrant is a newregistrant, per decision block 303. If the registrant is new, a newregistrant identifier is stored at the host server 16, per stored datablock 305, and the new registrant is prompted to enter their desiredpreferences for their presentation 20 (as described per option onebelow). If the registrant is not new, the registration identifier isverified, per operations block 304, to determine if the registrationdata corresponds to previously entered registration data that is storedon host server 16.

If the entered registration data does not correspond to previouslyentered registration data, per decision block 306, the siteowner/developer is requested to enter their owner registrationinformation again, per input block 302. However, if the enteredregistration data does correspond to previously entered registrationdata, per decision block 306, the site owner/developer is provided withtwo options: (1) modifying their previously entered desired presentationpreferences; or (2) using the previously entered settings, per decisionblock 318. Option one follows the left-hand side of the flowchart ofFIG. 2A and, as shown, the site owner/developer is requested toinput/modify their desired settings. Specifically, the siteowner/developer is requested to input their desired list of web sitesthrough which they would like system 10 to sequence, per input block308. The manner of input may be an interactive user interface, e.g., theuser enters the list through a keyboard, or it may be a previouslyexisting text file containing a plurality of web addresses that isretrieved as a parameter list by an automatic operation of composer 12.Still another manner of input may be the results list of a search engineor data base query. The results list may be entered as a parameter listby an automatic operation of composer 12, e.g., composer 12automatically receives the results list of web site addresses andproduces a corresponding presentation 20. Alternatively, the siteowner/developer may accept the default values of system 10, per inputblock 309. In the preferred embodiment of the present invention, thesite owner/developer is provided with all above-described options forentering a desired list of web site addresses. Of course, numerous othermanners of entering a desired list of web site addresses may be usedwithout departing from the spirit or scope of the invention.

Per the flowchart of FIG. 2A, the site owner/developer is also requestedto input the desired duration of display for each listed web site, perinput block 310, or accept the default values of system 10, per inputblock 309. Alternatively, the site owner/developer may enter a defaultduration to be used with each listed web site.

The site owner/developer is further requested to enter the number oftimes they would like the performer 14 of system 10 to replay theirentered list of web sites, per input block 312, or accept the defaultvalues of system 10, per input block 309. Alternatively, the siteowner/developer may simply enter that they wish their entered list ofweb sites to be continuously replayed. The site owner/developer is alsorequested to enter the order in which they would like their entered listof web sites to be displayed, i.e., in sequential order (the order inwhich the site owner/developer entered the web sites in their list) orin random order, per input block 314, or accept the default values ofsystem 10, per input block 309. Whether the preferences comprise newsettings, previously entered settings (decision block 318) or defaultvalues, each of the preferences is stored on the host server 16, perstored data block 316.

Option two, as mentioned above, comprises using the previously enteredsettings, per decision block 318.

A flowchart depicting the preferred operation of the performer 14 isshown in FIG. 2B. Up on being activated by the selection of apresentation 20 or by the initiation of a presentation 20, the performer14 operates to load the presentation 20 including the URLs andpresentation preferences, per operations block 330, and to sequencethrough the URLs with display to the user 24, per operations block 332.The performer 14 may be activated by the user 24 selecting thepresentation 20 from a gallery of presentations, by the user 24 enteringa web site that has been pre-configured with the composer 12 throughactivation of a hyperlink within another web site or e-mail message, bythe user 24 opening an e-mail message with a hyperlink that activatesthe composer 12 directly, or by the user 24 performing a query with aresults listing that automatically (or manually) activates the performer12. The performer 14 additionally operates to present the user with ageneric, presentation-independent control panel, per operations block334, such as the system-interactive user area 54 of FIG. 4. Theperformer 14 continues to sequence through the URLs with the defaultpresentation settings until the presentation 20 is paused or stopped bythe user, per operations block 336. Alternatively, if the user 24 hasmodified the presentation settings, per decision block 338, theperformer 14 continues the presentation 20 with the new presentationsettings until the presentation 20 is stopped or paused by the user 24,per operations block 340.

In the preferred embodiment of system 10, and when using the composer12, the site owner/developer is prompted to enter their presentationsettings via interaction with a data entry screen 40, an example ofwhich is shown in FIG. 3. Data entry screen 40 preferably includes a website list field 42 that allows the site owner/developer to enter a website address (URL) and a duration of display in a minute and secondformat (mm:ss). Data entry screen 40 also preferably includes a defaultduration field 44 should the site owner/developer not desire to enter aspecific display time for each entered web site address. Data entryscreen 40 also preferably includes a replay field 46 to indicate thenumber of times to replay the list of desired web sites, or to indicatea continuous replay, and preferably includes an order field 48 toindicate sequential or random display. Of course, numerous other mannersof obtaining a site owner/developer's preferences may be used withoutdeparting from the spirit or scope of the invention.

Upon displaying a site owner/developer's list of desired web sites perthe operation of the performer 14, system 10 preferably utilizes adisplay screen 50. An example of such a display screen is shown in FIG.4. Display screen 50 includes a web site display area 52 and asystem-interactive user area 54. System-interactive user area 54preferably includes a site field 56, a time remaining field 58, and areplay field 60. System-interactive user area 54 also preferablyincludes a pause button 62, a site-forward button 64, a site-backwardbutton 66, an edit options button 68, and a logout button 70.

Site field 56 provides an indication of the total number of web siteswithin a site owner/developer's entered URL list and an indication ofthe current web site's location within the list, e.g., 4 of 12. Timeremaining field 58 provides an indication of how much longer the currentweb site will be displayed before system 10 displays the next web site.Replay field 60 provides an indication of the requested number ofreplays for the entered web site list, or whether the replay is to becontinuous.

Pause button 62 enables a user of system 10 to stop the sequencing ofthe list of web sites and maintain the currently presented web site.Site-forward button 64 enables a user of system 10 to go to the next website in the user-entered list or to go to the very last web site in thelist. Site-backward button 66 similarly enables the user of system 10 togo to the previous web site in the user-entered list or to go to thevery first web site in the list. Edit options button 68 enables a userof system 10 to re-access data entry screen 40 to modify enteredpreferences. Logout button 70 enables a user of system 10 to exit system10 and return to vertical navigation of web sites. Of course, numerousother manners of interacting with the web site display of system 10 maybe used without departing from the spirit or scope of the invention.

It should be noted that while the present invention has been describedwith the composer 12 being utilized by only a site owner/developer, auser may utilize the composer 12 to create their own personalizedpresentation of web favorites.

Horizontal Navigation

The system 10 of the present invention may be used to achieve horizontalnavigation of a plurality of web site addresses. An example of ahorizontal navigation web site address list, as would be entered intoweb site list field 42 through use of the composer 12, is provided inFIG. 5. As can be seen, each web site address represents a new anddistinct address that would likely be unreachable via links in the otherweb site addresses. Thus, without the present invention, each addresswould have to be entered separately by a user, requiring considerabletime. However, with the present invention, the user can be presentedwith a slide show, capable of being stopped at any desired moment, ofunrelated sites that may address multiple or single topics of interest.The user's experience in accessing the World Wide Web becomes analogousto browsing several publications sequentially instead of reading asingle publication in its entirety, i.e., accessing a single-source,static-destination web site.

Vertical Navigation

The system 10 of the present invention may be used to achieve verticalnavigation of a plurality of web site addresses. FIG. 6 depicts atypical web home page wherein numerous links to other pages within theweb site are presented to the user, e.g., in the form of buttons 80 orkeyword links 82. Upon selecting a link, the corresponding web pageaddress is presented to the user. As such, to reach the various linkedpages within the web site and/or to drill through the multiple layers ofweb pages that may be present in the web site, the user must select thelink for each individual page. If a desired web page resides multiplelayers of pages from the home page, the user must traverse eachintermediate layer before finally reaching the desired web page.

However, upon invoking the present invention, e.g., by selecting theactivator 84, the various links within the web site are written to website list field 42 by automatic operation of the composer 12, and aslide show presentation of the various pages within the web site maybegin. An example of a vertical navigation web site address list,wherein the plurality of links within a single web site are provided, ispresented in FIG. 7. Once invoked, the present invention exhibitsdisplay screen 50 to the user, incorporating web site display area 52and system-interactive user area 54, and presents a slide show of thelinked web pages within the web site as depicted in FIG. 8 to the user24 of the performer 14. The user 24 may, of course, pause on any webpage desired for any amount of time and then resume the slide showpresentation provided by the present invention.

Item Navigation

The system 10 of the present invention may be used to achieve itemnavigation of a plurality of web site addresses. Item navigation is mostapplicable to a listing of search results from a World Wide Web searchengine or other knowledge base/data base search program (e.g., keywordsearch, list box, category reference, etc.). An example of a typicallisting of search results from a search engine is presented in FIG. 9.As shown, each of the results provides a linked web site address 86 anda snippet 88 of the web site containing the search terms from the user'ssearch query. Snippet 88 provides only a minor insight into the actualoverall content of the web site. As such, the user must select each linkto access the web site for review and determination of relevance to theuser's interest. To access yet another search result link, the user mustreturn to the list of search results and select another web site forreview; a tedious and time consuming process.

However, upon invoking the present invention, e.g., by selecting theactivator 84, the various links within the search result listing arewritten to web site list field 42 by automatic operation of the composer12 and an application programming interface that integrates withsite-based search functions, and a slide show presentation of thevarious pages of the search result listing may begin. An example of anitem navigation web site address list, wherein the plurality of linkscorresponds to a list of search results, is presented in FIG. 10. Oncethe present invention is invoked, the user need not return to theresults list to access the next item. Each page is presentedautomatically, per FIG. 11, wherein display screen 50 incorporating website display area 52 and system-interactive user area 54 is presented tothe user through the operation of the performer 14. The user may, ofcourse, pause on those pages they find interesting and/or relevant, thenresume the automated presentation.

The present invention may be used to achieve one, two or all and/or acombination of the above-described manners of navigation including thosesituations where one type of navigation is embedded within another typeof navigation. Of course, the present invention may be used to implementother manners of navigation without departing from the spirit or scopeof the invention. Furthermore, each of the presentations viewed may beadditionally enhanced with an audio overlay.

Thus, in view of the above, it can be seen that besides guiding visitorsmore quickly to relevant content, the present invention virtuallyeliminates the attention that visitors normally invest in pointing,clicking, and scrolling through web pages. As such, visitor satisfactionand productivity is increased, i.e., visitors to a web site stay longer,absorb more information, and return more quickly. The model of a passivesite and active visitor clicking through pages is replaced by theadaptive presentation model of active site and active visitor. In thisactive site/active visitor model the site owner or developer can offer arange of tours through a site wherein each tour is adapted to theinterests of a wide range of target audiences. Meanwhile, the visitorcan have single-click control for pausing at any page to delve moredeeply into available content and can also control the pace ofpresentation as well as select another presentation. Instead of activelypursuing random paths through web sites one click at a time, visitorsnow have a choice. They can relax and enjoy one or many pre-establishedpresentations—all with the option of stopping and/or diverting anytimethey encounter interesting content.

The present invention may be embodied in other specific forms withoutdeparting from the spirit of the essential attributes thereof;therefore, the illustrated embodiments should be considered in allrespects as illustrative and not restrictive, reference being made tothe appended claims rather than to the foregoing description to indicatethe scope of the invention.

1. A customizable web page presentation system comprising: at least oneprocessor and memory configured to: provide a dynamic presentationcomprising a plurality of web pages, comprising a sequenced list of webpages, wherein the sequenced list is created automatically by aquery-based system, wherein each of the plurality of web pages in thesequenced list is displayed as an individual web page within the dynamicpresentation and each individual web page is dynamically derived fromone of the plurality of web pages in the sequenced list by activatingthe corresponding web page in a web browser to access f execution timecontent from the corresponding web page in the sequenced list; cause thedynamic presentation to be automatically displayed according to thesequenced list; and cause each web page in the sequenced list to bedisplayed as a web page within the dynamic presentation by automaticallydisplaying the execution time content of each web page in the sequencedlist at execution time as only a portion of a web page in a web browser.2. The system of claim 1, wherein each of the plurality of web pages isidentified by a unique identifier.
 3. The system of claim 1, wherein theat least one processor and memory are further configured to cause thedynamic presentation to be automatically displayed according to thesequenced list and a set of user preferences defining presentationcharacteristics for the plurality of web pages.
 4. The system of claim1, wherein the at least one processor and memory are further configuredto automatically accept the sequenced list form the query-based systemand the set of presentation preferences to create the dynamicpresentation; and cause each web page in the sequenced list to bedisplayed as a web page within the dynamic presentation upon activationby the web browser, wherein the web browser is remote from the at leastone processor and memory.
 5. The system of claim 4, wherein the at leastone processor and memory are further configured to cause display of apresentation control panel in the web browser.
 6. The system of claim 5,wherein the presentation control panel is configured to enable a user toedit the dynamic presentation.
 7. The system of claim 6, wherein thepresentation control panel is adapted to enable a user to edit thesequenced list.
 8. The system of claim 1, wherein the dynamicpresentation is stored on a server for access by web users.